Geography & Administration of Tokyo

Administration

Tokyo has an administrative structure unique among the prefectures of Japan. It is officially designated as a "metropolis" (都 "to"). Although it generally resembles a prefecture, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government also offers partial city government functions to the 23 special wards included in the heart of Tokyo, which have a combined population of 8,134,688 and cover an area of 621.3 km². In addition to the special wards, Tokyo administers twenty-six suburban cities to the west, and a number of small islands in the Pacific Ocean. The Metropolitan Government's main offices (Tochō) are located in the Shinjuku Ward.

As of April 2010, Tokyo has a population of 13,010,279 and land area of 2186.9 km². Tokyo is also part of the Greater Tokyo Area, which consists of Tokyo itself and the surrounding prefectures of Kanagawa, Saitama and Chiba. The Greater Tokyo area is the largest metropolitan area in the world with a population of 35,676,000 according to a 2007 UN estimate.

Geography

Tokyo prefecture is divided into mainland and island areas. The mainland is located to the northwest of Tokyo Bay, about 90 km east to west and 25 km north to south. It borders Chiba prefecture to the east, Yamanashi prefecture to the west, Kanagawa prefecture to the south, and Saitama prefecture to the north. The islands are made up of Izu Islands and Ogasawara Islands, stretching 1,000 km into the Pacific Ocean.

Wards

Tokyo prefecture has 23 special wards in an area of about 621 square kilometers. As of September 1, 2002 the total population of the 23 wards was about 8.28 million, with a population density of 13,333 persons per square kilometer. Each ward is a local municipality with its own elected mayors and assemblies:

Adachi

Arakawa

Bunkyō

Chiyoda

Chūō

Edogawa

Itabashi

Katsushika

Kita

Kōtō

Meguro

Minato

Nakano

Nerima

Ōta

Setagaya

Shibuya

Shinagawa

Shinjuku

Suginami

Sumida

Toshima

Taitō

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List of cities

In addition to wards, the Tokyo prefecture manages a number of cities, like other prefectures.